EPA installs air quality monitors in Tema
The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has launched the Tema Air Quality Monitoring Network, an infrastructure that will help to track and combat air pollution in the industrial city of Tema.
The network uses low-cost sensors and a reference-grade monitor to determine air quality by providing real-time public data on pollutants.
The initiative, which was launched by the Deputy Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Alhaji Yusif Sulemana, in Tema last Friday, also seeks to identify the primary sources of pollution in Tema, such as industrial emissions and traffic.
Additionally, it has the objective to provide data-driven evidence needed to develop and implement effective air pollution management strategies.
The infrastructure would further make real-time air quality data accessible to the public, allowing communities to make informed decisions for their well-being.
The air quality network was launched at an event held in Tema Community Two to mark the International Day of Clean Air and Blue Skies.
Context
The United Nations (UN) General Assembly set aside September 7 every year as the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies to strengthen international cooperation in improving air quality and reducing air pollution.
The designation was made through the Assembly resolution 74/212 and adopted on December 19, 2019. By that designation, UN member states, including Ghana, recognise the need to substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination by 2030.
The countries also committed to reducing the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities by 2030, with particular focus on air quality, as well as municipal and other forms of waste management.
Stakeholder collaboration
Alhaji Sulemana said the celebration of the day was a wake-up call for multi-pronged action to combat air pollution.
He said it was important for all stakeholders, especially regulatory institutions within the environmental space, to work closely to crack down on indiscriminate human activities that contributed to air pollution.
The Bole-Bamboi Member of Parliament (MP) said air pollution was not only a public nuisance but a health crisis that threatened sustainable development.
He said the government would prioritise investment in infrastructure and monitoring systems that would help to measure air quality to inform policy decisions on the environment.
EPA’s commitment
An acting Director at the EPA, Selina Amoah, explained that the decision to install the air monitoring network at Tema was because of the pollution associated with the city's industrial status.
She said the installation of the devices would help the EPA to get real-time data on the nature of pollution in the Tema industrial enclave for prompt interventions to be taken.
"The launch of this project is significant because if we continue to talk about pollution without knowing the levels, we cannot take informed remedial action.
Once the measurement is taken and we see that the levels are high, there will be urgency to take remedial action," she said.
Ms Amoah said other air quality monitoring stations in cities, such as Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi and Tamale, would be hooked onto the network installed in Tema for coordinated action.
